View allAll Photos Tagged accuracy
Well, for accuracy's sake it wasn't our yard, but it was a new yard bird for the homeowners when it first showed up.
This is the painted bunting that has been hanging around in Oakville Ontario for the past several weeks.
We tried for the bird a while back but didn't see it.
I managed to see it within 5 minutes but Anne missed the bird.
We waited another hour but it didn't return.
Don't feel too badly for Anne, she had a good look at one in Texas and I didn't.
Passerina ciris
With their vivid fusion of blue, green, yellow, and red, male Painted Buntings seem to have flown straight out of a child’s coloring book.
The French name of the Painted Bunting, nonpareil, means “without equal,” a reference to the bird’s dazzling plumage.
The oldest Painted Bunting on record was at least 11 years and 10 months old when it was caught and released by a Texas bird bander in 2011.
source - Cornell Lab or Ornithology.
The Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) mission, scheduled for launch on Jan. 29, will measure the moisture in Earth's soil with greater accuracy and higher resolution than any preceding mission, producing a global map of soil moisture every three days. Here are five quick facts about the spacecraft and what it studies.
1. Soil moisture is a tiny fraction of water with a big punch. Only 0.001 percent of Earth's total water is lodged in the top few feet of soil. That tiny percentage, however, affects all living things on land and plays an important role in moving water, carbon and heat between land and atmosphere.
2. Soil moisture can compound water risks. A flood follows a heavy rainfall -- but only if the ground cannot soak up the rain. Waterlogged soil makes a region more flood-prone. Going to the opposite extreme, a drought can parch soil to such an extent that plants are unable to grow even after a few rains have fallen. Knowing soil moisture allows hydrologists to make better decisions related to the risk of flooding and drought, such as how much water to retain in reservoirs.
3. Soil moisture controls the on-off switch for carbon dioxide cleanup. The world's vast northern forests remove carbon dioxide from the air as they grow, helping to clean up our emissions from burning fossil fuels. But when the ground freezes, that process switches off. Carbon dioxide builds up in the atmosphere until the ground thaws in the spring and plants begin growing again. Knowing where and for how long the ground is frozen or thawed is an important part of understanding the role of the northern forests in reducing greenhouse warming. SMAP will map frozen and thawed soils north of 45 degrees north latitude (about the latitude of Minneapolis), around the globe.
4. SMAP is a twofer. The spacecraft's radiometer produces an accurate reading of how much moisture is in the top two inches (five centimeters) of soil, but it has low spatial resolution, that is, one measurement covers a large area. A radar instrument produces an image with higher spatial resolution, but it can't measure soil moisture as accurately as a radiometer. Through sophisticated data processing, SMAP combines observations from the two instruments into a very accurate measurement with high spatial resolution.
5. SMAP has a huge, folding, spinning antenna. At 19 feet 8 inches (6 meters) in diameter, SMAP's rotating mesh antenna dwarfs the size of the instruments and spacecraft and is the largest rotating antenna of its kind that NASA has yet deployed. But the entire dish furls into a cylinder one foot (diameter) by four feet (30 by 120 centimeters) to fit inside the rocket’s fairing for launch, and it weighs only 128 pounds (about 58 kilograms).
For more information about SMAP, see: smap.jpl.nasa.gov/ www.nasa.gov/smap/
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.
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A cheap weapon, lacking in accuracy, but very reliable. With it's relatively slow fire rate, the shown 75-round drum will last for quite a while.
Variable caliber, tactical bolt-action rifle.
A revision on the tried and true Arctic Warfare (AW) series. It is an improved AWM with a integrated bipod, lighter adjustable folding stock, new magazine, and nodes for an optional rail system that can be attached underneath the frame, for grip or grenade launcher attachments.
It still retains that distinctive thumbhole stock, which makes it easier to use for those familiarized with the AW series.
This particular model has increased resistance to dusty environments, increasing its already legendary durability and reliability.
Text created via MS Paint.
Font used are "Gunplay" and "Eurostile-Normal".
Testing the accuracy of the rangefinder on this early-1930s classic. I shot wide open near the close-focusing distance. I would say it is still accurate. The sides of the trunk are out of focus because the shape of the tree trunk makes those parts angle away from the camera. It's not an issue with the corner sharpness.
Camera: Zeiss Ikon Contax I (1933-34)
Lens: collapsible Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar 1:2.8 f=5cm
Kodak TMAX 400 Black&White negative film
Developed and scanned by www.meinfilmlab.de
Boskord Defense ={Colossi line}= - Experimental weapon Model 26A High Speed Ignitor System
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Cartridge: 23x75mmR shotgun shells
Magazine: 4 rounds
Accuracy: Depends on type of shell
Range: Depends on type of shell
Warfighting isn't easy business. There are many, many matters in your fight. One of these matters is the superiority. The most important rule of gunfighting is: Always win, cheat if necessary. NEVER give the enemy a fair fight. For this reason, we make you the toughest, heaviest, hardiest, deadliest weapons in the universe, in the best ways possible.
XM-26A HSIS - When you simply have to LIGHT THAT FUCKER UP
So yesterday I remember a guy that showed one of those Vepr ''flamethrower''s. He had told me that he was impressed by the quality of it. Then I started to laugh and showed this.
The XM-26A is one hell of a weapon. Rather than using any type of conventional shell, it fires the gigantic 23x75mm rimmed shell, as used by the KS-23. Oh trust me, those rounds have one hell of a recoil. And that is the exact reason why we use recoil buffers!
This baby is special. It comes in two variants. The variant seen here is the A variant. It fires FRAG-23 and SMART-23 shells, slug, buckshot, dark, and et cetera. It even fires flashbangs! And there is the B variant. That is the one I'm talking about. It fires Dragon's Breath, flare and the special Hades shells. The Hades shell fires a massive ball of napalm. It is ignited by a simple thing - Friction. Homever, it doesn't just light up when you fire it. It lights on fire when in contact with enemy or any type of object. Oh trust me, that flame can be massive. You also can't even extinguish it - It will only make it worse! For this, we have developed some special barrels. They make sure that the thing is absolutely fail-safe and is resistant to it.
Normally the recoil would indeed be massive. I've fired one of those KS-23s - Damn, I fired it a month ago and it still hurts! But, recoil buffers solve that problem. The recoil is still pretty big, but it's not hard to handle. What is incredible, is that it can still handle the other types of shells, although it still isn't really recommended.
The platform is obviously based on the XM-30 HARS we have recently developed. Homever, they are different.
Our weapons are known to be made of cheap, easily-available and reliable material. With the swift, accurate and incredibly cheap power of the Boskord, you will rule the battlefield - All by the Turkish power!
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NAPALM IS FUCKING AWESOME.
Many thanks to Semi, the one who suggested the friction ignition thingy!
I'm thinking about combining this thing with the OICW I have made yesterday, also.
Accuracy of the day... beyond the glass... behind the House, we see if we know, the European Parliament!
Précision du jour ... au fond du verre .... à 240 mètres à vol d'oiseau derrière la maison, on voit si on le sait, le parlement Européen !
2014-05-18-6D-004528-jardin.jpg
While reflecting on speed, accuracy, and efficiency on World Typing Day, here's an Apple 2nd generation wireless keyboard that I rescued from the bin. It looks quite elegant, takes up little space, and pairs nicely with my Mac, my phone, and even my radio (no clue how that happened!).
It is quiet in operation and has multimedia keys on the top row - handy for controlling the volume on my speakers. The 'eject' key (top right) is a bit of a pain as I often hit it instead of the backspace key.
But in truth, nothing compares with the venerable IBM Model F keyboard - sometimes called 'The King of Click'. If anyone ever makes a bluetooth converter for one, I might even buy it!
♦ Instructions available at BrickVault ♦
This is it! After the Torment, the Negotiator proudly joins my Midi-Scale capital ship collection, engineered with the same philosophy in mind: maximizing accuracy, features and proportions of the original model in a moderate size.
Made of 3,145 pieces, 68cm (27 inches) long, weighing 1,6kg, the Negotiator is a medium-sized, modular Venator-class Star Destroyer holding on a single, unique Lego stand.
This piece of work is the result of weeks of designing, engineering and intense testing. I wanted the Negotiator to be dense, massive-looking, intricate and packed with detail, while being compact and manageable.
Building at such a scale, I had to take into account every possible constraint (balance, weight distribution, structure sturdiness) while never compromising any aesthetics (SNOT look, thickness, greeble).
The Negotiator features every intricate part of the studio model: turrets, hangar and docking bays, engines, bridge, greeble... with utter attention to detail and proportions of the original ship, as seen in the Prequels.
► Instructions for the Negotiator are available at BrickVault!
All sizes for great justice.
The Accuracy International AWM, or Arctic Warfare Magnum, is a bolt-action anti-personnel sniper chambered in the potent .338 Lapua Magnum cartridge- and SPW had a special order for one.
With an interchangeable fluted barrel and next-gen muzzle brake, the 'Japhia' has an accurate range of over 1100 meters. The cheekrest has been replaced with an adjustable, screw-tightened model, and an adjustable spring-loaded bipod allows for easy stabilization on any terrain. The receiver has been retooled for a large metal trigger gaurd to be used, making it ideal for shooting with gloves.
A Sweetwater full-option Firefly IR scope completes the package. Credit to Davidman for his beautiful AWM, and Travis for the muzzle brake that I butchered :P
In the interest of accuracy, there are those on the left coast that like to call Amtrak's Seattle-Los Angeles Coast Starlight train the "Starlate." I personally prefer "Silver Slug," which mocks the tradition of Seaboard Air Line's fast Silver Comet-Meteor-Star, since the train averages a blistering 38.9 MPH from endpoint to endpoint.
The Coast Starlight pictured here was over nine hours late entering Emeryville, California. On the previous evening, the train held at Chemult, Oregon for seven hours. The train's thruway bus connection was stuck in a massive traffic jam - caused by the legions of people visiting Central Oregon to see the full solar eclipse.
We were vacationing in the Hyatt House at Emeryville, staying in a room on the ninth floor. The hotel definitely rates five stars for railfanning!
Saving people, hunting things. The family business.
I chose to build it to "DeLorean Scale" for functionality and accuracy.
Lyrebirds are awesome for two reasons: voice and tail. Their range, power and accuracy in producing complex sounds is outstanding, and their ability to accurately mimic other birds can completely fool any unwitting birdwatcher.
All this coolness is, of course, rather hard for a photographer to capture without resorting to video. So, the tail. Apparently the bird is so-called because its tail (somewhat) resembles a Greek lyre when the bird is in display. The tail of a lyrebird is composed of 16 feathers - two lyres, two 'medians' and twelve filaments. An extraordinary tail by any measurement.
Borderlands Style Descriptions FTW
Damage: ∞ ÷ 0
Accuracy: Wat
Fire Rate: How fast can you flip cock, boy?
Reload Speed: Molasses
Magazine size: 4+1
When you absolutely, positively have to kill every motherfucking bear in the forest, accept no substitute...
Bonus damage against bears, n00bs, and teletubbies.
Be sure to check out the full Atlas SPH album here
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The Tarakian military really loves artillery, which is why they have some of the best artillery guns and vehicles in the world, and more of them than any other nation. Tarakian artillery guns are known to be hard hitting, with unmatched accuracy, and have the ability to fire a myriad of different shell types. Another stand out feature is their built quality, and the quality of materials used in their construction, which is seen as a benchmark for all other nations. However, not all is positive, as Tarakian self-propelled artillery units suffer from two issues, issues that could have been rectified long ago had it not been for the insistence of a few hard headed know-it-alls in the military chain of command.
The first issue is that all current self-propelled artillery units are open top, exposing their crew to the elements and other hazards. Tarakia is such a vast country that it has many different climate types, meaning the crew of these open top vehicles can be subjected to torrents of rain, blizzards of snow and the biting cold, or the scorching sun. While it's true they have heaters, and protective canopies, no amount of fabric can protect against explosive or shrapnel damage, mortar fire, or attack from enemy aircraft. There is also the chance of gas or chemical attacks, even though such weapons are banned under various military treaties.
The second issue is that no Tarakian artillery unit has a rotating turret. The guns are fixed directly to the hull of the vehicle, and then given a limited left and right traverse. This is a minor nuisance at best, but in the modern world of self-propelled artillery, this design is seen as out of date and a thing of the past.
Tarakia has always followed it's own path when it comes to it's military designs, and this approach has served them well, but from time to time, it recognises that it needs to follow a certain trend to stay competitive. With more and more nations favouring rapid firing artillery units with fully traversing turrets, a fresh new breed of military thinkers in the chain of command made their case that the country with the greatest artillery force in the world needs such a vehicle.
Famous for their fondness of making one vehicle perform many different roles, the clever clogs at the world famous Tarakian Research and Development facility took the hull from the Ares MkII Main Battle Tank, and stripped it down until all that remained was the floor, the side walls, the road wheels, return rollers, tracks, and the upper and lower front glacis plates. While also reducing the thickness of the armour all round. Due to the rear mounted turret, and position of the driver up front, the engine had to be mounted in the middle, and then separated from the gearbox, which is now positioned at the front, meaning the drive sprockets were moved to the front also. A short drive-shaft had to be installed between the engine and gearbox, which runs along side the drivers compartment. The engine is the same type fitted to the Ares MBT, but down-rated slightly to 1220bhp, from 1420bhp. This down-rated engine produces less heat, and therefore requires less cooling. Even with it's armour stripped down to a maximum thickness of 20mm, the Atlas comes in at 54 tons. This is much heavier than modern SPH's of other nations. However, given that the Ares has good maneuverability, and comes in 16 tons heavier, the slightly down-rated engine provides more than enough grunt to give the Atlas excellent performance on and off road, and is able to reach speeds of 30pmh off-road, and has maximum road speed of 45mph.
An auxiliary power unit is installed in the front left of the turret, which is capable of powering all of the vehicles systems and functions while the main engine is turned off. Taking full advantage of the fully enclosed structure of the Atlas, the designers included full NBC protection as standard. The vehicle can be ready to fire within 30 seconds of coming to a stop, all without the crew ever having to leave the protection of the vehicle.
The Atlas is among the best, if not the best modern self-propelled artillery in the world before it was even rolled out into service. It's many new features and the level of build quality in the Tarakian design make it a new benchmark in mobile artillery. However, the gun is the real star of the show, which is fully auto-loaded and has several different firing modes. Capable of MRSI, or Multiple Round Simultaneous Impact, which is the process of firing several shells at a target with the aim of getting them to land at exactly the same time. The technique works because shells fire at different elevations take different times to reach the target. The gun and the breech chamber are separate, and connected by two hydraulic arms. When firing, the breech block elevates up to the rear of the turret, where 40 shells are stored. Two shells at a time can be loaded into the breech block, where a four chamber revolving drum spins round, and picks up another two shells. With four shells loaded into the breech block, it lowers back down and locks into position against the gun barrel. A shell can be fired every 2.5 seconds in this fire mode. This revolving chamber can also be used to store what's called side shells, in which the breech block will reach up and load a single shell every five seconds, but the other three chambers will be kept loaded with other shells, such as smoke, or smart shells. A 3 round per minute fire rate can be kept up continuously, which is aimed to reduce wear on the barrel.
The Atlas can fire many different shell types, including high explosive, smart shells, smoke, and an experimental new shell, which is rocket assisted. In testing, this new shell was able to achieve firing distances of up to 42 miles, within a three meter impact zone. The Atlas carries 52 shells for it's main armament, 40 in the rear of the turret, and a further 12 in the rear of the hull. Loading can be done either manually, one shell at a time, or the much preferred method, is a dedicated Ox unit will load four shells at a time into the rear of the turret. The 12 kept in the hull can only be loaded manually. The ammunition rack in the rear of the turret moves it's shells on a conveyor belt system, meaning that any shell can be picked specifically when needed. Moving away from cased shells, the Atlas uses a case-less shell. The propellant is formed into a solid shape, and attached to the rear of the shell head, which is completely inert until a small explosive charge is inserted into the end, and detonated. This means there are no shell cases to be removed and disposed off, which speeds up loading time, and allows for a faster rate of fire. Although admittedly, Tarakia is not the first country to use this technology.
Another new feature rolled out exclusively with the Atlas, is a firing system called the Bird of Prey Aiming System, or BOPAS. This system works along side UAV aircraft, or surveillance planes. Connecting directly to the Atlas via a live satellite feed, the UAV or aircraft will fly over the designated target zone and in real time, show a target area of impact to the gunner of the Atlas, meaning he can literally see the target in real time, and where his shell will hit. This system is not officially operational yet, and is still in the testing phase. However, if this system is made operational, it will change the face of artillery systems as we know them.
With the Atlas being rolled out and an order of 4200 units placed, Tarakia's existing SPAG's that are posted to front line service will gradually be replaced and transferred to auxiliary reserve regiments, or will be stripped down, cleaned, and then placed into storage for future use. If by the time all 4200 Atlas units have been rolled out, and there is no further use for the older SPAG units, they will be sold, or scrapped.
Tarakia has a strict No Sale policy when it comes selling military vehicles and equipment to foreign nations. However, it does have several allies along it's eastern border that benefit from Takarian military aid against other less than friendly and hostile nations. These allies act as buffer zones between Tarakia and those who wish to plunder it's wealth, and keeping them strong militarily benefits both them, and Takaria. So it's completely possible that some of the replaced SPAG's may find their way to any one of these allies.
Either a 7.62mm or a .50cal machine gun can be mounted at the commanders roof hatch for defense, which can both be controlled either manually, or remotely from inside the vehicle.
The Atlas has a crew of four, including a commander, gunner, loader, and a driver, who doubles as a secondary loader when the vehicle is stationary and firing.
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I really really love artillery, and like reading a book, I have to be really interested in the material for me to put time into it. I can't remember the last time I had this much fun on a build, even though I'm happy to admit, this build really kicked my arse. The shape turned out absolutely perfect, and it was one of those builds that kept me interested from start to finish. I had to come up with a few new build techniques that really dusted off the old Lego brain. Some were frustrating as hell, but to find a solution is just so satisfying. and made me want to tackle the next challenge even more. I think this may just be my favourite build of all time.
Able to shoot sub- MOA accuracy with surplus .30 caliber ammunition, the SD.30 is based on the SCAR family of weapons and is TexasTac's premier sniping platform. Firing easy to find and hard hitting .30-06 ammunition out of a 20" free-floated, cold-hammer-forged barrel, the SD.30 is a lethal and fast shooting platform. Coupled with its specially designed .30 caliber suppressor and the Elcan TR FOV optic, the SD.30 is an unbeatable platform. Whether your neutralizing targets at 1000 meters or at the range with your buddies, the Texas Tactical SD.30 is the top tier rifle for you.
Credits
Shockwave - JP pistol grip, heavy-duty bipod, detailing parts kit, and VLTOR stock.
Timathy Horsecack - Canted MP7 sights
Benjoo - FAL trigger.
Braydenmaine - Rail
Worlock - Alphabet
Taken @ Tent Pegging Championship, Chakri, Islamabad, Pakistan.
Tent pegging is a cavalry sport of ancient origin, and is one of only ten equestrian disciplines officially recognised by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports.
Designed to fire 7.62 mm rounds, the Gilgamesh can only be used with any accuracy by medium to heavy cyborgs.
Done in PMG.
Boskord Defense ={Daedalus line}= Mark 31 Compact, Versatile Assault Rifle System ''Swordfish''
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Cartridge: 7.92x39mm
Magazine: 30 rounds
Accuracy: Medium
Rate of rire: 750 rounds per minute
Range: 650-700 meters
Sometimes your standard carbine may start to have a hard time trying to hit that target. Maybe you need something more advanced? Maybe you need something extraordinary? For this, we make you the most advanced weapons you can find, but do not sacrifice the lower costs.
Mk.31 CVARS - Tiny package, gigantic punch
Is Vepr trying to sell you super-fancy, super-advanced and ''super-cheap'' rifles? Are their rifles failing their duties every single time? You wanna infiltrate AND snipe? Then this is for you!
Bullpups really are brilliant weapons. I mean, same barrel, but more compact size! More infiltration, but the same sniping! We seen what went with the L-85 and AUG.
The Mark 31 is a specially-developed rifle. It was built with a simple reason: Give the enemy hell, without sacrificing compactness. This here is for you!
It comes with four individual rails to mount your things. Though I highly suggest you should look for small sizes because those rails aren't gigantic. They do their job well though. It also comes with an integrated infrared laser, for your night operation needs.
Even though it has a rather unbalanced look, it is actually not unbalanced at all. This is due to the heavier material used on the front.
It rocks those devastating 7.92x39mm rounds in 30-rounder packages, with an even more devastating 750 rounds per minute. This equals to a much faster killing time in CQB scenarios, where you don't have much time to react. It also boasts easy-to-use iron sights. While they are great for quicker target acquisition and CQB, they are not as that great for medium ranges. Homever, our tests are showed us that it isn't bad either, and still does fairly well at such ranges.
Our weapons are known to be made of cheap, easily-available and reliable material. With the swift, accurate and incredibly cheap power of the Boskord, you will rule the battlefield - All by the Turkish power!
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Took me some time... Wanna know why? Because there was a shitload of errors. But it should be good now. :) Enjoy!
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Credit goes to,
Hello World, for the main body of his assault rifle,
Prokhor, for the idea to remake the SAR-12 as a Boskord gun,
And the IRC crew for backing me up :)
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Mk.31 Mod.1 CVARS, slightly longer barrel, longer rails:
What you should know or maybe like to know, if you don't.
I own two different camera systems that I am very proud of and satisfied with. I spent a lot of time, effort, and money to acquire them. A Hasselblad 503CWD and a Nikon D3x.
My first and second cars cost significantly less than either.
Both camera brands, Hasselblad and Nikon are highly respected, globally.
N.A.S.A. has used both.
"What is the photo above about?", you may wonder.
I am a perfectionist, when it comes to color accuracy, in my photography. Well, it turns out that not one camera manufacturer can boast rendering perfect or accurate colors. It is guess work, at best, and if a photographer wants to render colors accurately, then you must use a Color Temperature meter or whenever possible take one shot with a ColorChecker Classic or ColorChecker passport in the photo as a reference and then the second photo without. Use the image taken with the ColorChecker to adjust colors in your final image. For fast action, sports, car racing, fast moving or easily spooked wildlife, it would be impractical, unless you staged or planned the shoot.
Bear in mind I use a Color Calibrated Eizo Monitor, designed for photography and graphic artists.
I use a Gossen Color Temperature Meter to take measurements and set that in my cameras as close as the cameras will allow.
Yesterday, I made a simple color accuracy test, comparing the Hasselblad 503CWD to the Nikon D3x.
It was 14:00, sunny and 26°C.
I measured Exposure at ISO50 to be 1/30sec and f/22.0
I measured Color Temperature at 5,520°K.
I set the same exposures in both cameras.
In the Hasselblad, I could only set the nearest Color Temperature of 5,500°K.
In the Nikon D3x, I could only set the nearest Color Temperature of 5,560°K.
The differences are so slight between 5,520°K, 5,500°K, and 5,560°K they would be practically imperceptible.
You will notice in the two photos above the colors are slightly different.
So, I must ask my global audience, which camera is correct?
Nikon would not comment on why Hasselblad would be different or why they appear different in Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom.
Hasselblad did not reply, at all.
If you believe your Canon, Sony, Fuji, Pentax or whatever are superior, then try this simple test. You might start having serious doubts about the superiority of your chosen camera system.
Again, the best way to assure color accuracy, would be to take two photos, if possible. One with an X-Rite ColorChecker Passport under the same lighting conditions in the scene or against the subject and one without. Then correct the colors on a color calibrated monitor, checking the values of each square against the X-Rite ColorChecker Passport or pick the Neutral Gray square and the composition X-Rite uses is sRGB 121, 121, 121 for 50%.
Color is the offspring of Light and that offspring is dependent upon its parent. Also, the quality of the light will absolutely influence your personal perception of color. That is looking at a photo under the glare of an afternoon Sun or an 11W Warm or Soft White LED bulb above your head. On that note, you should use a 5,000°K >CRI 85 light for processing photos on a Color Calibrated monitor, using 6,500°K White Balance and 2.2 Gamma (an international standard).
So, my conclusion is this, regardless how much you pay for a camera . . . the weak points are the sensor or film, the lens make up, its coatings, and the way each wavelength of light is transmitted through it to the sensor or film. Any processor in camera that artificially makes warm tones, particularly for snapshots and portraits, it is another weak point. Then, if you have engineers and designers who are not photographers or color geeks and who answer to the Corporate Accountant to manufacture a camera to a certain price point or certain type of photographer, they are the greatest weak points of any camera.
Consider Hasselblad's own words,
"Hasselblad Natural Color Solution
Colour management solutions have in the past imposed limitations on professional digital photographers, because of the forced choice of a specific colour profile to suit the job: for example, capturing various skin tones, metals, fabrics or flowers. To combat this, Hasselblad has developed the Hasselblad Natural Color Solution to be used with its FlexColor imaging software. Working with the powerful, new Hasselblad Natural Color Solution enables professional photographers to produce outstanding, reliable out-of-the-box colours, with skin tones, special product gradations, and other difficult colours accurately reproduced."
Also, when new, the Hasselblad 503CWD camera was limited to only 500 and cost 11,900 Euros. Used ones still fetch as much as $11,005.72 AUD, on flea bay.
And consider that when new, the Nikon D3x, if purchased in Australia would have cost $13,000
So, my conclusion is this, regardless how much you pay for a camera . . . a photographer must still get his/her head around White Balance, Color Correction, Screen and Printer Color Calibration and use the best technique to get the best and most accurate photographic results. Anything less is merely artistic licence, interpolation, happy snaps, amateur hour, buying into the manufacturer telling you what makes a photograph -in my view. And, lastly, your favorite camera merely interpolates based on manufacturer's algorithms. If you can only afford one camera or even one brand name professional camera body and a few lenses, you may not know or appreciate any of this.
My next test, I will repeat comparing the Nikon D3 against the Nikon D3x. I also have a Limited Edition Fujifilm Finepix X100 I might compare. Standby
For a more in-depth understanding, please visit, here-
cassidyphotography.net/color-photography-thesis/
A gentle reminder about copyright and intellectual property-
Ⓒ Cassidy Photography (All images in this Flickr portfolio)
(Alzoc III, Year 21 BBY, Separatist Research/Command Base, Half an hour after Kydan's awakening)
Breona: "I've never seen the general so...aggressive before.'
'I mean, many of us have seen her fight countless times; using her saber to cut down her enemies with great strength and swift agility. But this was way over the lines of normal. The way she gripped her saber, the way she took down her enemies around her...was absolutely brutal. The look on her face, ever since leaving the outpost, was not that kind-hearted look she gave to her troops, or to us of Tanga Squad.'
'No, this was the look of anger, lost and revenge. Her eyes were burning with fiery fire, as if they were ready to burn the chunks off the scraps we were fighting right now. One look into her eyes and you'd be turned to cinders.'
'No one in the team knows why she is acting like this, or why she hasn't said a whole lot of words to her troops. Only me and a few others know why...and it's scaring us somewhat. Her mind must be only about him. Losing him must have triggered a switch in her mind, as if turning it on and having her seek vengeance on those who had him killed.'
'I hope she gets better soon. Cause I don't want to be in her line of fighting when it comes to the battlefields. Who knows what could happen. Worse comes to worse...I'd hate to bring her down myself."
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The Separatist were immediately out gunned, and out-flanked. Not even a third of the day had passed by before the Republic invaded the outposts, rapidly taking out all and any communications between the bases and any nearby reinforcements.
What was even worse was the blood raging Jedi Knight who was sweeping through the droid forces, wiping out squad after squad in mere seconds. Her accuracy, her speed, her strength, all of her skills had, as if, been enhanced by her vengeance that was boiling inside her. To some it was a good thing...but to others, it was terrifying.
As for the troops, who all tried to stay as far away as possible from their leader, watched in awe and fear. Of course, they were overjoyes that the general was able to quickly break through their defenses, but it didn't mean that they weren't just a bit frightened by her. They all knew that the general was somewhat close to the Lieutenant and that the two had been fighting alongside each other since the beginning of the war, but to see what happened after his death, most of them were very concerned.
Even feared, if you wish to call it that.
Nonetheless, even with those thoughts invading their minds, the droids were beginning to pull back slowly but surely as the clones kept pressing forward, utterly sending the droids back into their compound.
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Watching from above, inside the command center, Dr. Vinscti, along with his personal mechanized guards, stood in view of the battle outside the base, observing and watching the fight unfold before him. He had a hunch that the Republic would eventually find this place, but had not expected them to attack the base only half a day after his machine "killed" the Dark Mercenary. He, apparently, must have hit a sensitive spot in their special forces.
Especially seeing the Siruhnian Jedi General sweeping through his forces immediately, causing him to ponder on the current situation.
Dr. Vinscti: "Apparently the Witronian's death was enough to cause chaos in the hive's command, did it? Hmm...well, no matter. This just gives me the field test I needed from the beginning."
The Doctor turned to the droids that were all at their stations, working hard on whatever they were doing upon the panels.
Dr. Vinscti: "Send in another wave to the front! I want that Jedi inside the base alone! Do anything to keep the clones at bay until then!"
Droids: "Roger roger!"
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Back on the ground, Calena, Egile and the clones continued to press on their attack with much success.
Patterns: "General, the droids are pulling back!"
Calena: "Keep pressing the attack then! I'll push them back into their compound!"
Egile: "What?! Calena, wait a minute-!"
Either she ignored him or didn't hear him, Calena, using the Force, swiftly dashed into the compound where the remaining wave of droids were falling back into, using her saber to block and deflect the incoming barrage of lasers.
Egile: "Damn it! Everyone, move up to the compound! Give her as much cover as possible!"
Clones: "Sir yes sir!"
As soon as they were heading towards the compound, the giant metal doors were immediately closing up, quick enough to stop them all in their tracks, with the exception of Calena who had already entered the base already. Egile looked at the now closed doors and groaned in fustration.
Egile: "Argh! Can this day get any worse?!"
As soon as those words left Egile's lips, they were immediately met with a few shots from the side, taking out a couple of their own troops within the fire. Looking over to where the attacks came from, they were quickly face-to-face with another wave of droids from the right side.
Growling, Egile began to fire back, with Breona, Patterns and the others following suit, their guns beginning to overwhelm the enemy droids.
Egile: "We gotta keep these droids back! For now, Calena is gonna have to be on her own til' we deal with these guys!"
_________________________
Meanwhile, at the same time, inside the base, Calena was staring down the remaining droids in the large room. But that didn't last long when the doors closed behind her and a small wave of reinforcements swarmed into the area. Their gun barrels all targeted at the lone Siruhnian Jedi Knight, ready to open fire upon her.
???: "Impressive, Jedi. Very impressive indeed."
Looking up to whomever was speaking to her, she spotted on the balcony two guard-like mechanical droids standing next to the doctor himself, Dr. Vinscti, who had a big smirk across his face. From her point of view, he seemed very please with whatever he's grinning about.
Calena: *Growls angrily* "Vinscti..."
Dr. Vinscti: "I am so glad you could join us for this special occasion. I was hoping to test it on two subjects at once, but you will have to do."
Calena- *Raises voice* "You're gonna pay for what you did, Vinscti!"
Dr. Vinscti: "My, did I hit a nerve? I didn't realize that the "Dark Mercenary" was si close to you. I had thought the Jedi weren't suppose to form attachments with others beings. Am I correct, Siruhnian Knight?"
If she wasn't so angry, she might have blushed a little from that small comment. But because she didn't give a crap, it only made it even worse. Just speaking about him like that was only making her even angrier, and dangerous. Her eyes just becoming the small shades of yellow.
Calena: *Mutters angrily* "You killed my friend...my best friend......and you're gonna pay for it..."
Dr. Vinscti: "I think not, Jedi. Look around you! You are all but alone, defenceless against my best elite droid forces in here. There's no chance of you surviving this fight."
Calena: *Glares* "Just try me, gharset."
As Vinscti motioned his hands to his forces, immediately, the droids aimed their guns at her, awaiting for the order to attack.
Dr. Vinscti: "If you insist, Jedi. Droids! Dispose of her immediately!"
_________________________
(AU: The word "gharset" is about identical to the "podoo" phrase in the Star Wars Universe language guides
_________________________
Reactivating her saber, she was suddenly met with a large barrage of laser fire, immediately cornering her from both sides. With the Force as her ally, she swiftly and easily swung her blade around, deflecting the shots back at some of the droids. Her movements were grace, as if she was dancing around the room in a melodic motion. Her saber danced with her motions, making quick work against the enemy as many of the droids fell to the ground, becoming nothing but scrap.
Expecting the Siruhnian Jedi Knight to be able to handle herself against his elite droids, and considering that he had planned this from the beginning, he pulled out a small control pad and immediately punched in a few things. Hearing the sound of a machine from underneath the hangar activating, his broad grin growing more wicked by the second.
Dr. Vinscti- *Murmurs* "Let's see if you can handle this, Siruhnian..."
Just as she sliced down another droid into half, she halted her swift attacks as she began to feel the floor around her started to shake, making her lose her balance a bit. Confused on what was going on, she immediately saw the middle of the hangar floor began to separate. Slowly rising from the hole was a familiar machine that she knew too well. The moment she laid her eyes on it, flashbacks of memories began to flood her mind, emotions moving all over the place.
Watching the platform rise, the deadly Predator revealed itself in front of the Siruhnian Knight, causing her body to slightly shiver and shake from the sight. Her blood ran cold just from looking at it. Even after what had all happened, she couldn't help but feel the sense of fear of the large machine killer.
In seconds, the Predator's body activated as its eyes began to glow brightly red. The sound of it's metal screech boomed all over the base, echoing through and out the place. That made Calena even more nervous of the large monster, more so when she had first saw it firsthand.
Dr. Vinscti chuckled wickedly as he called out to it.
Dr. Vinscti: "Go, my beast! Kill the Jedi!"
Complying by making metallic sounds, the Predator prepared itself for combat, arming its weapons and getting into an attack position.
Just having enough time to prepare herself, the large machine spitted a barrage of laser fire upon her, causing her to quickly dodge the incoming attack. Using her Force Speed ability, she swiftly dashed towards the Predator from her right as she readied her saber. She got as close as she could possible and swung her saber directly at one of it's arms in hopes of slicing it off.
However, the moment her saber made contact with the Predator, it immediately bounced back at her. Shocked by this, she had little time to dodge the Predator's left arm, almost making contact with her. She had no idea what to do next for her attack. So instead, she made sure to back herself away from the large beast.
Her original idea was to decapitate the machine's arms and then the waist, then finish it off by slicing the head. But now knowing that the machine is somehow being ray shielded entirely, it just makes things a bit harder to deal with.
Hearing the threatening sound of the machine's groaning and screeching yet again, it stood into place as it charged up it's laser turrets from the shoulders. Knowing what was to come, Calena immediately took off dashing towards it once more.
The Predator locked on to it's designated target, and fired up the Siruhnian Knight. Dodging left to right, to jumping and ducking, Calena jumped into the air and on top of the machine's head. It began to shake it's head rapidly, in attempts of getting her off.
Holding on for dear life, Calena begins to swing her saber at it's head, hoping that the ray shield would soon wear down and deteriorate. The machine, out of nowhere, threw its body downwards at full capacity, sending a surprised Calena downwards with it and losing grip on the machine's head. Slamming into the ground with much pain, she slowly picked herself off the ground, only to be met with the Predator's claw foot.
Again, she was sent flying backwards, sliding across the metal ground til' she came to a halt. She could feel the insane pain pulsing throughout her body. Her entire body was all bruised, cut and greatly sore. It was already hard enough to be getting back up and preparing to fight, unable to shake off the weakness her body was giving off. She now felt helpless against the Predator machine.
Dr. Vinscti watched the entire display unfold before him, his laughter being heard throughout the hangar. His plan had worked perfectly. The poor Siruhnian Jedi Knight was completely useless alone against his creation. He knew he had won the fight, and was ready to finish it.
Dr. Vinscti: "Time to say goodbye, Jedi. Predator, kill her immediately!"
Acknowledging, the large machine aimed it's turret lasers at Calena once again, calculating its target and all. Calena could only watch, feeling the emotions of fear and sadness rushing through her again. The doctor was right. She was utterly helpless to fight the Predator on her own. if she had another Jedi with her, they might have stood a chance.
That was then she got the image of Kydan; his broad smile gracing his lips, his brown eyes staring into her cerulean eyes, the kindness he showed to her. Immediately, her eyes began to tear up as they rolled down her cheeks casually. First she had failed to protect him, now she wasn't able to avenge him. She felt like a complete failure and a fool.
At least...she would die and hopefully be able to see him in the Force. That was all she could ask for, considering what has all happened so far. That would definitely be enough for her.
Just as the guns locked on and loaded, ready to spit out one last barrage of laser fire, the machine was suddenly met with a saber slash to the head. It backed off almost immediately as the saber struck. It then realized that there were sparks coming out from it's side, electricity spurting out slowly.
Dr. Vinscti: *Angry* "Now who?!"
Turning towards to where the saber had swung back to, standing on the other side of the hangar was none other than Kydan, wielding his purple saber and another one that produced a dark, black saber. His expression looked as though someone had ticked him off. The stern and serious look on his face told it all. His eyes that were once the gentle, kind brown, was now a dark red rose color. His right arm that held the black saber was covered in black armor-like, small blue and black electricity trails surfing across his entire arm and up to the tip of the saber.
Calena stared at him as if she was in a dream, that this was all an illusion and that she was already dead. But the longer she stared at the "dead man", standing before them all, the more her emotions started to rush. Her heart felt so relieved, pounding fast every second that past. Eventually, a broad, relieved smile appeared on her lips.
Calena: "Kydan...you...you're alive!"
Dr. Vinscti watched in shock and anger. How was it possible? He had seen the mercenaries' death from the holograms, falling to his doom in the ice, cold, dark abyss. And yet, here he was, very much alive! He hardly couldn't believe it.
Dr. Vinscti: "H-How?! You are suppose to be dead!"
Kydan: *Smirks* "Well, unfortunetaly for you, I'm still here. Though, I appreciate the concern, doctor."
That just made Dr. Vincti even angrier. His eyes narrowed as his left one twitched.
Dr. Vinscti: "I suppose if you want something done, you gotta' do it forcefully. Predator! Kill that mercenary scum! I want his head!"
Grunting in agreement, the Predator advanced towards him, locking it's guns in the process. As the machine charged toward him, Kydan stood in place with a grin itching his lips. Calena watched in fear as the Predator got closer and closer. Her concern started to get worse.
Calena: "Kydan, get out of the way!"
But just as the machine got within a few feet away from him, a mysterious black, colored force stopped it in it's tracks. A large field of blackness stood between himself and the Predator, the machine trying to bash through it. However, merely seconds after, Kydan raised his arm towards the field and the machine before the field blasted the machine back towards the doctor and his guards.
Both Calena and Vinscti watched totally surprised. Neither of them expected that out of the mercenary. Thoughts plagued their minds at the thought of what he just did. The Predator picked itself back up it's metallic claw feet, it's red lighted eyes brightening ever so more as it tried it's best to glare at Kydan. Roaring another metal screech, the machine charged once again, aiming it's barreled guns at him.
Kydan stood into place as the machine got closer and closer, preparing himself for the next attack that it was going to throw at him. The guns that were attached to it had already locked onto Kydan as a wave of laser fire came flying his way.
However, Kydan anticipated it's next attack pattern as he leaped into the air, passing right above the Predator's armored head with the laser fire just missing him barely in the process. The machine looked around it to find him, swirling it's head left and right. Not even a few seconds past before the sound of a quick whistle from behind caught the machine's attention.
Just as it turned around to face the Dark Mercenary, it was quickly attacked with Kydan's two sabers, both of them swinging straight into it and beginning to cut at it's gun attachments. Even though the armor on the machine was heavily protected from most attacks, it couldn't handle the sheer power that Kydan was using at it. Both of his lightsabers were covered in pure black and blue energy, electricity surrounding the blades entirely. Almost immediately, the guns that it had been using were quickly decapitated.
Dr. Vinscti glared in shock and anger as the guns fell to the ground.
Dr. Vinscti: "Impossible! The armor was suppose to be impenetrable!"
The machine stumbled back from the amount of damage Kydan hit it with, glancing back and forth at it's now sliced attachments that had originally been on it's shoulders. As for Kydan, he could feel himself getting quickly exhausted. The amount of power he was using, thanks to Dark, was being drained fast. He knew that his next attack would have to finish, but the Predator was still pretty well fit to fight.
That's when an idea popped into his head. Looking over to Calena, who had been watching the fight entirely, he called out to her.
Kydan- "Cale'! I need your help!"
Calena- "Huh? With what?!"
Kydan points his black saber at the Predator's legs as he looks back at her.
Kydan: "If we can take it's legs out fast, then that machine will be in no shape to fight back! We can end this!"
Looking back and forth towards Kydan and the Predator's legs, she pondered for a brief moment before nodding to him in total agreement. Nodding back to her in response, both he and Calena made quick haste towards the occupied machine. Dr. Vinscti watched as Kydan and Calena charged towards his weapon, trying to figure out what the two had in mind. Not wanting to let them have that chance, he yelled to his large machine.
Dr. Vinscti: "Stop staring at your stupid arms and get those blasted Jedi and mercenary! Now!"
Grunting in compliance, the Predator raised it's left arm at the two and charged up the gun barrels. After a mere few seconds, it immediately let out a barrage of lasers, flying across the hangar and towards Kydan and Calena. The two made eye contact with each other for a second before splitting off from the left and to the right. Finding that the Dark Mercenary was a much stronger enemy, it concentrated its counter attack at him, leaving Calena alone.
When Kydan noticed this, a smug grin formed on his lips, knowing that his plan had worked like a charm. The Predator has once again left itself defenceless. Even Dr. Vinscti noticed his machine's mistake, and knew it was and would be too late to change it's attack pattern. He had screwed up this fight.
Dr. Vinscti: "Numiina! You blasted scrap pile! Get the Siruhnian!"
But before the Predator could comply, it had been already too late.
_________________________
(AU:"Numiina": Definition for the word such as "Podoo")
_________________________
With her extremely fast speed, Calena raised her saber to the side, slashing her saber directly at the Predator's leg. The impact itself was strong enough to cause her lightsaber to cut it's way through the special metal armor, cutting right through the entire leg. Losing it's balance, the Predator tried to keep itself from falling down. It's metallic claws dug into the steel floor, just enough to keep the Predator from losing balance.
Just as the Predator stood upright, Kydan took his chance to attack. The Predator realizes this and raises its arm, blasting another wave of laser fire. Easily, Kydan deflected the laser fire back at the monstrous beast, some of it's own lasers hitting the armored chestplate. While the Predator was taken off-guard, Kydan jumped in the air and raised his two sabers in a 'X' shape formation, guarding his body in the process. With all his might, and whatever power and strength he had left, he swung his blades down across the Predator's body, piercing and slicing his way through its body entirely.
Vanishing into thin air, Kydan re-appears in front of the Predator, his back faced to it as he dropped down to one knee, the sound of electricity goes immediately haywire. The sound of the Predator's grunts, screeches & other electronic noises indicated that it was in utter danger. The Predator's red eyes faded into blackness as it tumbled down backwards into the steel floor, the sound of a loud thud and clank rang throughout the base. The machine's laid lifeless on the cold floor, not a single movement from its mechanical parts moving or twitching.
Finally, the vicious Predator was destroyed.
Dr. Vinscti stared in complete surprise, unable to speak up about the calamity that just happened. His machine...his own machine, had lost to two Force-users. Backing away from the rails, he looked over to one of his bodyguards.
Dr. Vinscti: "G-Get me to my shuttle now! We are leaving immediately!"
But just before Vinscti could be escorted out, a few blaster shots was heard, in the process of his droids collapsing on the balcony. Stunned by the unexpected attack, Dr. Vinscti was met with Breona, Egile and a couple of Clone Troopers. Their guns aimed and pointed directly at the doctor himself. Vinscti scowled somewhat as he saw a knowing look on Egile's face.
Egile: *Grinning* "I believe this is the part when we ask you to surrender, Doctor. Or do you wish to not cooperate?"
Again, Vinscti snarled and reluctantly raised his arms in surrender, glaring at the Republic soldiers who were approaching him.
So zoned out from the fight, Kydan's breathing quickened from exhaustion. He looked back towards the machine that he and Calena had just beaten, malfunctioned and destroyed. He still didn't know how it was possible, but he had somehow, with Calena's help, destroyed a monstrous machine that could have been a dangerous weapon to any Force-user in the galaxy. Feeling himself drifting into unconsciousness, Kydan felt numb and fell to the cold ground with a thud, his sabers rolling away from him. The last thing he heard was the sound of Calena's voice calling to him.
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Kydan didn't know how long he was out, but before he had regained conscious, he had heard the same familiar voice from earlier.
???: You have done well, my ancestor. However, this is just the beginning of you're inner power...
After those words faded away, he suddenly heard a woman's voice calling to him. An almost too familiar voice.
???: "Kydan? KYDAN!"
_________________________
Slowly opening his eyes, he made eye contact with none other than Calena herself. It had taken him a moment to process what was happening, but when it was clear enough, he saw the expression on Calena's face. Her eyes were red and watery, with tears rolling down her cheeks. Her face expression was all but concern. Perhaps him collapsing and falling into unconsciousness must have made her worried.
Looking slightly around, he slowly and groggily gets up from the comfort zone of Calena's lap only to meet with some pain on his body.
Kydan: *Groans* "Man...how long was I out?"
Calena: "Just for a few minutes..."
Not able to stand it anymore, Calena lunges forward and wraps her arms around him, burying her face into his shoulder as small tears soaked slightly into his coat.
Calena: "Idiot! That was completely insane to do that!"
Shaking off from the unexpected contact, Kydan weakly chuckles at her, a small smile plastered on his lips.
Kydan: "Hold me too tightly, and I might just die."
Breona, R.S. and Egile walk up to the two, small smiles plaguing their lips.
R.S. : "Looks like you've taken one hell of a beating again, huh Kydan?"
Kydan: *Smirks* "You could say that."
Egile: "Just warn someone when you want to try to kill something that big the next time, alright?"
Kydan: *Slight Chuckle* "I'll try to remember."
Breona- *Salutes* "Welcome back to the land of the living, sir."
Kydan: *Nods* "Glad to be still alive...after all that had happened."
The three nod in agreement. Out of most of their missions together since Nal Hutta, this was, by far, one of their most dangerous one yet. Shaking his head ever so slightly, R.S. spoke up in a serious, yet curious, tone.
R.S.: "Anyways, what was all that, Kydan?"
Kydan didn't look very amused when he asked that, a gloomy expression growing on his face.
Kydan: "...Do I really have to say?"
R.S.: "Well yeah! I've known you for almost half a year by now, but I've never seen anything quite like that before! It's like you got an upgrade on powers!"
Kydan bit his bottom lip. He should have known, or just knew, that the others were gonna ask him that. The powers he carried, the Forge, was something he always tried to keep hidden in secret. But since he chose to use it on the Predator, keeping it a secret was out of the question. He didn't want them to know, considering that they might become afraid of him. Perhaps even worse, and that was his biggest fear.
However, the situation wasn't going to change. He had to tell them, one way or another. With a big sigh, he started to explain.
Kydan: "...It's called the Forge. An ancient power that is connected and powered through the Force itself. My Forgula, or partner, Dark, helps me control my powers to an extent. At the age of six, I had discovered these powers through a training accident on Coruscant. When the Jedi Council found out about it, I was ordered to be kept in check from personal Jedi Masters in order that I won't hurt another soul again. For years, I've kept myself isolated from everyone, and yet, my powers grew on their own."
Egile: "Is it some kind of Jedi technique that you got it from?"
Kydan: No. All I know is that I was born with it and Dark had watched over me from my youth. To everyone in the galaxy, I'm considered a monster. A freak evan."
R.S.: "Are you the only one that has one of those...F-Fork-Forgilers?"
Kydan: *Nods* As far as I know...yes."
The room went silent as some of the clones mumbled to each other, no doubt weary of Kydan's powers now. He knew the risk of using it, and he was paying the price. If it came down to it, he would immediately leave and head for the Unknown Regions and, hopefully, reside somewhere in there.
But what came next shocked Kydan, the three looking back to him with small smiles appearing on their expressions.
R.S.: "I can't believe you didn't tell any of us that you had that kind of power! We would have understood."
Kydan: "Huh?"
Egile: "If you're the only one that carries one of those, then it would be considered rare then. You're pretty lucky to have that kind of power."
Kydan: *Blinks* "Your...not gonna tell anyone?"
Breona: "A lot of people would wanna know how you tic...but we're your brothers in arms. We're like family, and family don't sell each other out, especially for credts."
Degree: *Smirks* "Beside sir..."
A smug grin formed on both Degree and R.S.' faces as they looked between him and Calena, who was still holding him in her arms. Kydan looked at the two clones suspiciously.
Degree: "Well, they do say suffering and pain builds up character, sir."
Kydan: *Glares* "You could have help a little, you know..."
About everyone in the hangar chuckled at Kydan's demise and situation. Much to his disklike of the matter, he couldn't help but feel relieved, and also loved, by his friends that he was surrounded by. He really did feel at home with them all. When they all calmed down, Breona spoke up once again.
Breona: "We already made contact with General Coneros and Hecilt, and are on their way with additional gunships. They should be here soon, but we're gonna scan the rest of the base for anything useful. You gonna come, sir?"
Kydan: "Nah...I'll leave it up to you guys. Go ahead without us. Besides, I'm downright exhausted..."
Breona: *Salutes* "Roger. We'll be back with a report."
As Egile, Tanga Squad and the clones made their way deeper into the base, it left Kydan and Calena alone to talk. Kydan looks down at her, aware that she hadn't spoke a word hardly at all.
Kydan: "Hey, Calena?"
In response, she hugged him tighter, not wanting to let go anytime soon.
Calena: "I was so afraid...that you were really dead. I almost lost it when you fell down the hole. I don't know what I would do if you really die."
Kydan: *Smirks* "What? Hey, you were the one who went up against that machine first."
Calena: "......I'm sorry."
Kydan: "For what?"
Calena: "For not being there...for not saving you in time when you fell."
Kydan: "There was nothing you could have done, Cale'. There was nothing anyone could have done."
A few moments of silence filled the room before Calena spoke up once more, her voice more clearer than before.
Calena: "Promise me..."
Kydan: "Hm?"
Calena: "Promise me you won't leave us...that you won't leave me again."
Kydan's eyes widen just a little from her response. The way she asked him made his face heat up a little. He didn't know why, but his heart just about skipped a beat. In a way, he felt his face heat up. Not really knowing what to do, hesitantly, he wraps his own arms around her, putting his chin on top of her shoulder. He closed his eyes and softly spoke to her.
Kydan: "...I promise. I won't leave you. Not now, not ever."
In response, she nodded her head and buried her face even deeper into his shoulder as the two didn't move from their perspective positions or let go fo each other.
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So after so many chapters later, our two protaganists start to reveal their feelings for each other. Won't be too long now before one admits it to the other. But which will one will say it first? You guys will just have to wait and see ;P
Personally, I LOVED this chapter so far! We really wanted to add something different to this one, get some different angles, views and positions of the builds. This chapter had been in the works for a couple months ago, but it was hard to decide how to approach it, as in what kind of scenes should be played. I'm just happy that it's done and over with honestly lol! Buit let us know what you guys thought in the comments below. We would love to hear what you guys have to say.
Now, it's time for...SHOUT OUTS! Been too long since we did one of these with you guys, so its time to get back in the groove of things. And I have to say, there is gonna be a LOT of people that will be listed. These shoutouts go to the following below.
Well that's about it for this chapter, so thank you all for your wonderful support, and if you can, leave a favorite and/or comment to show us how much you enjoy reading our content. Hope you all enjoyed, and as always, have a fan-tucking-tastic day/night! See ya' in the next one ;)
- Director K.W., CGN Crew Members
An international team of astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have made new measurements of Uranus' interior rotation rate with a novel technique, achieving a level of accuracy 1000 times greater than previous estimates. By analysing more than a decade of Hubble observations of Uranus' aurorae, researchers have refined the planet’s rotation period and established a crucial new reference point for future planetary research.
Determining a planet’s interior rotation rate is challenging, particularly for a world like Uranus, where direct measurements are not possible. A team led by Laurent Lamy (of LIRA, Observatoire de Paris-PSL and LAM, Aix-Marseille Univ., France), developed an innovative method to track the rotational motion of Uranus’ aurorae: spectacular light displays generated in the upper atmosphere by the influx of energetic particles near the planet’s magnetic poles. This technique revealed that Uranus completes a full rotation in 17 hours, 14 minutes, and 52 seconds — 28 seconds longer than the estimate obtained by NASA’s Voyager 2 during its 1986 flyby.
“Our measurement not only provides an essential reference for the planetary science community but also resolves a long-standing issue: previous coordinate systems based on outdated rotation periods quickly became inaccurate, making it impossible to track Uranus’ magnetic poles over time,” explains Lamy. “With this new longitude system, we can now compare auroral observations spanning nearly 40 years and even plan for the upcoming Uranus mission.”
This breakthrough was made possible thanks to Hubble’s long-term monitoring of Uranus. Over more than a decade, Hubble has regularly observed its ultraviolet auroral emissions, enabling researchers to track the position of the magnetic poles with magnetic field models.
“The continuous observations from Hubble were crucial,” says Lamy. “Without this wealth of data, it would have been impossible to detect the periodic signal with the level of accuracy we achieved.”
Unlike the aurorae of Earth, Jupiter, or Saturn, Uranus’ aurorae behave in a unique and unpredictable manner. This is due to the planet’s highly tilted magnetic field, which is significantly offset from its rotational axis. The findings not only help astronomers understand Uranus’ magnetosphere but also provide vital information for future missions.
The Planetary Science Decadal Survey in the US prioritized the Uranus Orbiter and Probe concept for future exploration.
These findings set the stage for further studies that will deepen our understanding of one of the most mysterious planets in the Solar System. With its ability to monitor celestial bodies over decades, the Hubble Space Telescope continues to be an indispensable tool for planetary science, paving the way for the next era of exploration at Uranus.
Credits: ESA/Hubble, NASA, L. Lamy, L. Sromovsky; CC BY 4.0
Damage: Si Señor
Accuracy: Hits what you're aiming at (if you aim that is)
Fire Rate: Muy Rápido
Reload Speed: Más o Menos
¿por qué no los dos?
When fired from the hip, all shots fired are buckshot shells with low accuracy and range but incredbly high damage. Aiming down the sights causes all shells to act as highly accurate slugs that suffer from reduced damage.
For balancing issues, the weapon was designed so that if you put any kind of additional sights, scopes, laser sights or any unmentioned aiming assistance devices on, all projectiles become floppy pink dildos. Great for sexy time, not so great for murderous, gun-toting banditos (usually...)
Also, I know that sawed off shotguns have been done to death, but I wanted to make one, so... deal with it, or face the fury of my floppy dildo projectiles!
Vepr® Relics - ~Torque~ MKX3 Railgun AR "Harangov" - Bullpup Menace
lel u gais mad yet? This is more of a quickie than a real build BTW, only about two hours.
Also, if xan's poison in point seven is the g36, mine is the tar in point six. Fuck I love this reciever.
VEPR INDUSTRIES IS HIRING. FM ME FOR DETAILS!
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Ammunition :
> Standard - .02 CL Tungsten Projectiles
Magazine : 55 rnd
Range : Medium-High
Rate of fire : 560 RPM
Firing modes : Semi Auto/Full Auto
Death is an art with Vepr Industries. Watch your enemy die amongst a crowd of dancing flame or watch them be fried in a swirl of electric bolts. Watch the fleshy body disintegrate harmoniously into fifty million equally sized blood red pieces and sweep right into the wind. That... is the beauty of Vepr.
The Harangov - Bullpup Menace
A compact bullpup railgun. Manufactured exclusivly by Vepr Relics, this is a very premium gun - accurate as well as powerful. A long magazine will keep you firing off the entire battle!
Not requiring any hassle with EPs, it is a straight forward gun for the non-experienced user. Basic variants come with integrated holoscopes. Recoil dampeners and an ergonomic design of comfortable materials make it easy and good to hold.
Power. Compactness. Accuracy. Harangov - Only from Vepr Relics.
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Creds and Deds:
-Crosshatched - tiny BB technique
-Beck - shaded rails
-Elliot - 3d Shading
-Whataboss - engraving thingie
Driving in the snow creates problems in accuracy. Slipping, sliding, and missing your mark are real considerations while driving even if the amounts are not monumental. It’s not all that different photographing in the snow, even if the physics differs significantly. Because snow represents a solid interface between the camera and subject, autofocus is frequently unreliable. The camera may try to focus on the wall of falling white rather than the subject. Switching to manual focus is probably the best way of ensuring that the subject of the photo is sharp, and the snow, just added pleasure. #Moose
Willapa National Wildlife Refuge has several trails available for exploration, but the Art Walk is the most engaging and kid-friendly.
www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/willapa-national-wildlife-ref...
Park at the visitors center (no fee required) and embark down a possibly slippery boardwalk that crosses a marsh and heads into second-growth forest, including a labyrinth. The trail heads uphill from the parking lot and traverses along a forested ridgeline, crossing a staircase cut into a downed tree before descending into a valley bottom and meandering along a creek. Pass a labyrinth (and take a moment to explore it) before arriving back at the parking lot.
This short hike is packed with interpretive signage and lovely art installations that will keep hikers of all ages entertained. The art installations were commissioned from students of the University of Washington Public Arts Program. They designed, constructed, and installed the artwork for the trail under the direction of professors John Young, Ian Robertson, and Jim Nicholls.
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"Mixing Art and Nature at Willapa Bay"
Nancy Joseph 10/01/2007
Within minutes of entering the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge in southwest Washington, visitors may find themselves perched on a mud-loving marine worm while picnicking on the back of a dragonfly.
Gary Carpenter used terrazzo for the surface of his picnic table and benches at the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge.
The worm and dragonfly are a picnic table and bench created by Gary Carpenter, one of five undergraduates commissioned to create sculptures for the refuge through a public art course (ART 332) offered by the UW School of Art.
The sculptures, installed in September [2007], represent the second stage of the Willapa Bay Interpretive Trail project. The project uses artwork, rather than traditional signage, to teach about the species and biodiversity of the refuge.
It was scientist Charlie Stenvall who proposed the idea for including art in the refuge. Stenvall is project leader of the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge Complex, home to numerous threatened and endangered species including migratory birds and fish, insects, amphibians, and mammals.
“We had interpretive panels in the refuge, and I commented to someone that interpretive panels bore me to death,” recalls Stenvall. “I said that there must be a better way to engage the public.” Staffer Jean Harrison suggested using art instead, and Stenvall ran with the idea. He and interpretive specialist John Ivie contacted John Young, director of the School of Art’s Public Art Program, to discuss commissioning students to create artworks. That was seven years ago.
The first art project had both sculptural and architectural elements, including a serpentine boardwalk that guides visitors along a restored stream where salmon spawn. “Once that project was completed, it made me realize how much more we could do,” says Stenvall. He and Ivie contacted Young again last fall, proposing a second phase and providing a $50,000 budget for the art commissions, including private support from the Friends of Willapa National Wildlife Refuge.
The project became the focus of Young’s spring quarter public art course. The class traveled to Willapa Bay to tour the trail and talk with refuge staff. Then each student prepared a minimum of five ideas, which they presented to refuge staff for feedback. As with all public art, durability was a concern. The works would have to withstand salt water, high winds, and public use. But equally important was accuracy in the depiction of species.
“The staff at Willapa Bay wouldn’t let us stray one bit from getting the biology right,” says Young. “The students had to represent species that are right there, not ten miles away.” An amused Stenval adds that through this process students “learned a lot about some pretty strange species, like coral fungus and warty jumping slugs.”
After their first presentation, each student fine-tuned one or two ideas and prepared models, schematics, and budgets, which they presented to a seven-member selection panel at the end of spring quarter. “There was a lot of nervous energy that day,” recalls Carpenter. “Everyone was so keyed up and enthusiastic about their ideas. And the biologists were great. They were very supportive.”
Kristen Boraca's 15-foot sculpture is installed in an open field.
For most of the 20 students in the class, their involvement with the project ended with that presentation. But for the five who were selected, it was just the beginning. They spent long summer days in the UW’s Ceramic and Metal Arts Studio completing their artworks, with guidance from Young and faculty colleague Mike Magrath. The students’ learning curve was steep as they tackled unfamiliar techniques—welding, bronze casting, terrazzo—and learned to work within a budget. “This was not an academic exercise,” says Young. “This was real.”
Kristen Boraca created a 15-foot-tall steel sculpture with birds spiraling skyward to suggest bird migration. “My first idea was to have birds on the ends of metal poles, jutting out everywhere,” says Boraca. “I got a harsh critique of that one. I was told they looked like skewered birds.” She laughs, adding, “Clearly I had to revise.”
The biggest challenge, says Boraca was ensuring the piece’s structural integrity. “Through the whole building process, I was fighting gravity,” she explains. “It’s a huge structure without much to support it.” Graduate teaching assistant Noah Grussgott helped Boraca throughout the construction process.
For Jacqye Jones, installation of her artwork was a family affair. Jones cast 38 small sculptures in bronze, each depicting a species found at the refuge, including a newly discovered tailed frog that is unique to Willapa Bay. The sculptures are embedded in mortared stone; Jones’ family helped dig holes and pour concrete for the work. “My piece is a representation of what happens horizontally in the river, but I’ve depicted it vertically,” she says, explaining that the site’s murky water makes viewing the actual species difficult.
Jacqye Jones pours hot wax into a mold she will use for her bronze figures.
Becca Weiss created 14 directional signs for the refuge, with birds serving as the “arrows.” Perched at the end of long curved rods that sway slightly in the breeze, each bird is painted to represent a common migratory species found at the refuge. Their beaks serve as directional pointers.
While the others focused on animal species at the refuge, Allison Blevins tackled something more unexpected: oil. From the boardwalk over the marshland, visitors can see oil floating on the surface of the water. Many mistakenly believe that it is runoff from the parking lot nearby. The oil is actually from plants that are breaking down. You can tell the difference, says Blevins, because plant oils break into shards when disturbed, while petroleum swirls.
To help visitors to understand that the oil is the result of a natural process, Blevins created bronze shards that represent the plant oils. Text etched into the bronze explains the phenomenon. The shards are set in the boardwalk.
Allison Blevins works on the text for one of the bronze shards that represent plant oils breaking down.
Then there’s Gary Carpenter’s dragonfly picnic table, surrounded by three benches depicting a blue nereis, a giant water bug, and a juga snail, all topped with colorful terrazzo. “It’s been an amazing learning journey,” says Carpenter. “As an undergraduate, to be able to leave the University with something like this in my portfolio is amazing.”
No one is more pleased to see the artworks installed than Stenvall. The art has brought more visitors to the trail, he says, which translates to more people learning about the refuge. Stenvall is already looking forward to a third round of artwork commissions in the future.
“Science is constantly being updated, creating opportunities for art to interpret that,” he says. “I see this as a living art trail. It’s not meant to be static.”
artsci.washington.edu/news/2007-10/mixing-art-and-nature-...
Hey everyone! I’m back at college now and was waiting for my first class (a criminal justice and society course-something I intend to draw from for accuracy in my writing, which is what I tend to do with most classes) when I realized I have just passed 200 followers. At first, I planned to post the new All New Robin I have ready but then was hit with a bit of news that actually hit me pretty hard: David Bowie, the Starman himself, passed away due to a not previously released battle with cancer less than a week after releasing his newest album (which, as it turns out, deals almost exclusively with death and acceptance of it, which makes the entire situation sting more).
Since I was a kid I’ve been listening to the singer’s amazing work from Ziggy Stardust to Earthling and beyond, with each new song of his I encounter instantly becoming my new favorite. As I listen to the YouTube playlist I am compiling of his work it’s made me think of just how many amazing songs he has performed: Space Oddity, Heroes, Starman (featured perfectly in The Martian), Cat People (featured perfectly in Inglorious Basterds), Modern Love, Let’s Dance, Fame, Under Pressure, Changes, Moonage Daydream (featured perfectly in Guardians of the Galaxy), Something in the Air (featured perfectly in American Psycho), and my personal favorite of them all: The Man Who Sold the World (I mean, I did name a volume of Red Hood after that song, and it’s in my top five favorite songs ever written/performed of all time without a doubt).
With thoughts of celebrating reaching 200 followers and the passing of one of my favorite artists of all time I thought I would combine the two into a celebration of Mr. Bowie while giving a sincere thank you to all who’ve stuck around through hiatuses upon hiatuses with my work. I may not be delivering hit after hit like the Starman once did, however I intend to work just as hard while immortalizing him through my writing and hopefully using his music in films I may work on in the future.
As always, thanks for reading, and below I will provide links to all of the songs I mentioned above so that you may too enjoy the work of a true music titan.
Space Oddity: www.youtube.com/watch?v=nP6xBFyA_aw
Heroes: www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3SjCzA71eM
Starman: www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRcPA7Fzebw
Cat People: www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWX_MFNOL_Y
Modern Love: www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJCBYUKMvMQ
Let’s Dance: www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4d7Wp9kKjA
Fame: www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-_30HA7rec
Under Pressure: www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUW_8cWG7YA
Changes: www.youtube.com/watch?v=pl3vxEudif8
Moonage Daydream: www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFDj3shXvco
Something in the Air: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wh1eUFbMo-A
The Man Who Sold the World: www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSH--SJKVQQ
R.I.P. David Bowie
This is straight from the camera, apart from a B&W conversion, no other photoshop trickery. The building is one of many in the financial district of London, quite close to the Gherkin & Lloyds insurance building.
I couldn't believe my luck when I noticed this plane appearing in the view finder, just had to wait for the right moment!
For better accuracy
Camera Canon 550D
70-300 mm
Settings
distance : 180 mm
Aperture : F \ 5
Shutter speed : 1\320
Iso : 400
I Am Not A Big Fan Of Clipped Wings BUT Then Couldn't Resist Sharing This One For The Sake Of Power , Speed & Accuracy Demonstrated By These Terns In Kabini . Hope You All Will Enjoy This Handheld Shot From A Moving Boat :)
*K-BAM*
*K-BAM*
*K-BAM*
AP: "....penetration's good, velocity is on check, accuracy though....dammit.....wish The Cane was finished, would probably sort that out just--"
JD: "We gonna field test that, too?"
AP: "Jerrick? A-and Ms. Tate! To what do I owe the occasion? Is it about your MG?"
LT: "That'd be nice, but--"
JD: "We just got back from an art show. It was attacked by a militia. They killed everyone...."
AP: "Oh....oh God, that's not good...."
LT: "Yeah, and if anybody knows their militias, it's you."
AP: "I suppose. What are they like?"
JD: "Heartless, for one."
LT: "And they wore full gear in blue camo, like the navy or something. Mainly blue and gray."
JD: "And they used Tavors like what I was given in Wymarcie."
AP: "Blue camo and Tavors, attacking civilians....doesn't ring a bell. We already took down the biggest terrorist ring some months ago."
LT: "Nothing? Really?"
AP: "I'll search around. These guys sound too big and loud to be all that secretive. Gotta be some dirt to dig up."
JD: "It doesn't end there. They had a leader with robot legs, an arm, and a fucking laser eye. And he called me Thompson. My Army alias."
AP: "What? That's not possible, I made sure that name of yours was erased a long time ago."
JD: "I know. That's why it scares the shit outta me. Anybody who'd honestly remember the name is dead."
AP: "And they attacked just tonight? It's not gonna be the last time, that's for sure. They've probably got radio chatter going, I'll find it and link it back to you."
JD: "Thanks, Arnie."
LT: "....about my MG, though?...."
AP: "Yeah, uhh....look, that thing...sucked, I'll admit. Every other week you were bringing it in for some new stupid problem."
LT: "It got old quick. But I still need it."
AP: "You'll need a weapon, yeah, but not that crappy MG. I've got something better in mind."
LT: "Ooookay, lemme see."
AP: "Not yet. Still putting on the finishing touches."
LT: "*sigh*...well when will it be done?"
AP: "Very, very soon. I promise. until then, you two should get going...."
Top left : A grid appearing as allotment parcels. Spaces for different crops and different seed cycles. There seems to be an accuracy to the grid's description with some columns having five segments with others as strips and others as six - as if someone is recounting details of a lifestyle.
Top right: Corniforms associated with an enclosure and a grid. It's almost as if the crofter's hut had large open-arm fencing, so that it might be seen from a distance in foggy conditions. Here, the 'corniform' may have signalling both cattle and 'hut' according to context (as, for example, a joint symbol for snake and water). For those working outside for much of the day, fencing focused on a home might also provide protection from wind and sun, and frames for drying anything from hey to river fish and even for stretching if the construction is solid enough. Ștefan Chirilescu recently posted pictures of grass drying on special fences in Roumania. Enclosures may also have gone against a spiritual notion that the earth was a free spirit and opening your house with wide arms may have helped to counter this dissonance while being as strong as a bull with its projecting horns.
Lower left: A field of sheep at the foot of a valley with two fields rising up its slopes - one with more animals and the other with plots for cultivation.
Lower right: a natural set of micro fissures provides the delimitation for a grid of allotments. If different clan members had their own plots then an element of pride and competition may have been at play. Different varieties and seed cycles.
Potential links between 'domestication' and enclosures needs to be looked at in a little more detail. Stepping back, there are two ways of seeing a natural cliff (this logic can also work with a river barrier but is more manageable with an inland cliff): natural cliffs or edges need only be several meters in height to become useful for hunters. Hunters read landscapes and try and manage animal movements within their predictions. From above, cliffs can cause the deaths of multiple animals, rushing together as a herd in fright, resulting in too much sudden meat followed by a potentially meagre year. There are examples of mass kills in prehistory, and, whilst the mindset of ultra satiation may be a weakness in man, there will always be some hunters who see a cliff for its other direction. Cliffs approached from below can force an animal to turn to the left or to the right. When arriving from below, a cliff is like a natural version of a fence or wall. There are also occasions when cliffs can provide angles, and these can become a focus for a coordinated hunting drive. Adding screens and fencing to 'extend' a natural cliff is a natural evolution that may have been some of the earliest structures outside of habitation. Pre domestication cows were Aurocks - a species that could be large and dangerous and from the category of 'Megafauna'. One strategy for hunting Aurocks was to dig a pit and drive the animal over this artificial cliff. Unlike a real cliff, a pit lets, for example, pregnant Aurocks survive to feed for another day. Clans that switched to this method from cliff drop methods may have missed on giant self-satisfied feasts, but gained on long-term stability. As with pit hunters, hunters that used the underside of a cliff as a barrier could also 'filter' their herd. Forcing a herd in one direction by building a strong barrier would allow hunters to, in effect choose the amount of animals they need, and this would be steps in the direction of the concept of the corral and pastoralism. Aurocks were so big that for most clans the number was probably always 'one'. When choosing which to kill, factors may have entered planning and decision making. Stepping back: the biggest 'prize fish' or the biggest 'predator pike' are always somewhere in the thoughts of a fisherman's plotting mind, and likewise the biggest Aurock or the most dangerous and formidable Aurock may have been first choice in a hunt that could keep a group of animals together. Repeated over several generations, and the gene pool of Aurocks will shift to towards smaller and more docile animals - given a constrained environment. Beaters and hunting dogs, screens and whistles, strong fencing and stones can all help to manage a local herd to the same semi-natural 'trap' until a point comes when the herd is just no longer as 'frighting' and is almost 'domesticated' into this cycle of life. At this point, any fencing is strong and tested by generation after generation, and it becomes imaginable to shut the 'trap' and 'hold' a small herd inside an enclosure. Feeding the smaller and more docile animals then becomes a way of 'waiting for a mother to give birth', or avoiding having to do 'yet another' time-consuming hunt for meat that you know you will need in just two months time... cutting hay rather than hunting during the interim, or herding animals over a local area. Over time, difficult animals are still killed in priority, and the animals 'learn' their new environment. Here, at no point, did an individual human have the bright idea to domesticate the giant 1,500 kg Aurock - so daunting as super massive museum sculls (no need to teach the Museum of London's 1m wide Aurock horns how to moo). These ideas build on ideas I developed for a Spanish stone row site: www.flickr.com/photos/ajmitchell-prehistory/29024790508/i...
Some forest situations will let aurocks split, other situations will have floating populations so that new large Aurock quickly join with herds, other pools of Aurocks will have been on large continuous marches so it must be expected that the above scenario needed special local conditions - but the results would have been something to be seen and talk about.
There is a nice synthesise by Alice Roberts (Tamed 2017) where she talks about smaller Aurock skeletons: "The Balweg Aurochs ... estimated to stand 134cm (...) to have been a less formidable target for Mesolithic hunters (...and it) raises the possibility that many, later Aurocks have been misunderstood as domesticated cattle, or as hybrids with Aurochs...."
The prior proposed mechanism shows how Mesolithic hunter gatherers who were increasingly fixating their lifestyle 'loops' on fewer and fewer geographical areas, could have occasionally effected changes in local gene pool distribution - as 'hunters' and not as 'farmers' - in effect, 'priming' stocks prior to true farming enclosure decisions and prior to or in conjunction with the arrival of the 'neolithic revolution' from the fertile crescent. Here, when the first ever generations of surplus domesticated cattle finally arrived, let's say Italy 8,500 ybp, after a 2,000 year inductive transmission of the neolithic revolution from the 'first ever' domesticated cattle of today's 'Syria' (having travelled at a stately .000015 kilometres an hour); they might have been meeting to interbreed with some smaller local Aurocks that were on the verge of their own domesticated routine, here the alchemy of 'official fertile crescent' mixes with local 'semi tame' stocks to produce the specificity for today's local cattle breeds. As always, be cautious of arrows on maps making it look as if a 'new' simply replaces an 'old'.
Prehistoric 'highways' and inter-regional solstice meets would offer opportunities to explain hunting techniques via simple schema - for example: listeners who were based in territories without cliffs might talk about tips on how to make sturdy post holes, or ways to keep cattle herds to a local area with out the interference of wild stocks.
A shepherd has a tame flock of goats, a trained dog and a night pen... He can be with his wife and son, and in spare time they use a new ultra-productive bronze age scythes to cut down meadow grass. Obviously this hay would be interesting for any cows kept aside a croft to winter lower in a valley, but a pile of hay may also give off a sweet smell and be attractive for wild Aurocks (the last were often seen during the ages of the Roman Empire with the last 'officials' bidding goodbye in central Europe circa 1637). A further 'bronze age' crofting synergy may have been found between small numbers of cattle and herds of sheep and goats. Here the sweet smell from a pile of scythed grass may have attracting wild cows as cheese for a mouse trap or sacs of collected acorns for a wild pig. Bringing in and 'managing' passing wild stocks aside modest cattle rearing - a dynamic and flexible reading of an environments potential.
Only the top right petroglyph can be seen without a guide
AJM 1.219
Is there any other sort of visual art that requires such a combination of speed, timing and accuracy? And do those constraints change throughout the year, month to month and sometimes minute to minute?
This was originally going to be called Seventeen Sun Circles which sounds like a much cooler number than five.
But I started too late and the evenings are really drawing in fast and I started to run out of thorns. If I wanted to make seventeen circles then by the time I had finished it would be dark and I would have missed my chance.
Of course musicians and dancers have to be accurate, fast and timely. Perhaps painters have to apply their paint in a particular fashion so it does or doesn't dry. A stone sculptor must tap the chisel just right to reveal the shape within the rock, whilst the bronze must be at the right temperature for correct casting. All important technical skills for artists in a myriad of disciplines. But, as I have never followed these disciplines, their subtleties pass my by.
The materials I use come from nature and change and grow and decay all the time. Leaves rip, tear, dry out, shed fixing thorns, curl up and go brown. You need to be accurate so that you aren't fixing them over and over as they cannot take the punishment. Wood and sticks dry out and contract, will snap and not be moist enough to be pierced with thorns. Colours fade and everything becomes brittle so you need to be fast too if you want to bring your ideas into fruition.
I try to incorporate the elements themselves into what I create, the sun, the moisture in the air, the temperature all play a part and as you become more skilled with the materials, you reveal more and more about how they behave. You notice the subtle nuances in everything: the height of the stream, the angle of the sun, which new plants grow at different points throughout the year.
This may sound like I am bemoaning the variability of what I use but that couldn't be further from the truth. Does paint change throughout the year? Will a piece of music die off in autumn and return once again in spring? The more time I spend making land art the more gifts Mother Nature throws up for me to discover.
I may have set off to make seventeen circles but I had to adapt. Therein lies the essence of land art. I had to experience and feel the change in the movement of the sun, the drawing in of the evenings and the impending dark time I feel within.
Nothing ever stands still, everything is in constant flux and making natural art sculptures from anything I find around me opens a little window into the world of nature and all her wonderful and fascinating nuances.
By the way - I am still hibernating. I made this is in September. I'm off back to my cave...